Horror Games I could Handle

I can't usually handle much horror, but, these games were really good. I could handle them. If you are anything like me, so can you. Let's review some games. 

Courtesy of Nintendoeverything.com

I'm not going to be playing FNAF (Five Nights At Freddie's) anytime soon, nor am I going to be playing Garten of Banban, Poppy's Playtime, or Bendy and the Ink Machine. I'm not that type of gamer. My husband will watch people play those, but won't watch them with me. The point of saying all this is to point out I'm a cozy, mystery storyline gamer. I'm a Nancy Drew gamer and a farming sim gamer. 

This makes it all the more impressive when I can play and enjoy a game labeled "horror". Not all horror is the same. Some games are just light horror and mostly comedy, like West of Loathing and Shadows Over Loathing. Others are more suspense-based and have a rich storyline that doesn't scare you as much as unsettle you, like Call of the Sea and Dredge. Dredge is a cozy horror if anything. There are also two Nancy Drew games with several jump scares all over, which include Ghost of Thornton Hall and Shadow at the Water's Edge. Those are personal favorites, if you can believe it. 

Dredge and Call of the Sea

Both of these have the same general vibe. I would say light Cthulu vibes would be an accurate description. Lovecraftian horror can go darker than ever, yet, I find these don't go overboard on that element. It is mostly adventure. You explore your environment and find out what happened, and when. 

First, we go into the cozy horror Dredge. You are a fisherman going to an island who needs one. You crash underneath the lighthouse and find an odd village of Greater Marrow and Little Marrow. You fish and upgrade your boat (preferably before you go out to the other island chains, hint hint) and pay off your boat debt. Once done with all that, you are compelled by a collector to go after items in each island chain around the Marrows, all with monsters. Be advised no item is ever easy to find or obtain. When you see it is merely a few lengths away don't just jump into the middle of the basin (another hint - don't learn the hard way!). Something is strange about the way the lighthouse keeper speaks to you and the collector. I urge you to think back on what the lighthouse keeper says to you. You'll find the tone of her words will change in your head when you play through it and finally understand what is going on. 

Courtesy of WCCFtech - Call of the Sea

Call of the Sea is a game of pure adventure and is not an open world. It may look like it, but it isn't. The premise is that you, Norah, are looking for your husband on the island where he came to find a cure for your disease. The island seems to give you a strange boost in health you didn't have before. You come upon letters from your husband and hard puzzles set up just for you. You'll understand why when you finish the game. Be warned the puzzles are hard. Pay attention to what Norah takes notes on to get past all of them. There are six chapters, which are six big puzzles. When taking a break from the game, I'd suggest stopping at the start of a chapter. Some smaller puzzles are "mess around and find out" - no blatant instructions at all. Others have instructions. It is more of a suspense if you ask me. 

Loathing

West of Loathing and Shadows Over Loathing are mostly comedic, with some horror elements. You are a stick figure exploring the area of Loathing and it is hilarious. I'm going to leave two videos, one of each game, to explain the games. They have one plotline each, but many many side quests. 

West of Loathing is a western. Shadows Over Loathing is themed on time travel issues and a shop that deals with cursed objects (run by your uncle who is missing). Your stick figure can stupid walk, obtain XP, fight enemies, and earn money to get better stuff. It is also a puzzle game and takes some brain power to complete. It's fun. You should try it. They are infinitely replayable.

Nancy Drew

Ghost of Thornton Hall and Shadow at Water's Edge are Nancy Drew Herinteractive games. In Thornton Hall you are looking for a missing woman who disappeared on a haunted property. In Water's Edge you are "on vacation", but not really. You stay in Japan and discover a ghost haunting is being faked. Nancy is never on vacation for real. She doesn't know how to relax. 

Both games are light horror in some ways and mysteries in others. It is hinted that Charlotte from Thornton Hall is not fake. I talk about that in this blog. Play before reading the linked blog. It contains spoilers. You can find out for yourself. Both games are puzzle-heavy and have jump scares built into the game all the time. Thornton has so many you can get an achievement for finding them all. Happy ghost hunting!

Courtesy of YouTube.com

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